Cambodia is mostly associated to Angkor Wat for travellers. This image turns the Kingdom into a mono-destination. “It is time to promote the country as a multiple destination with its pristine beaches in the South, a vibrant urban life in Phnom Penh, its capital city and ecotourism destinations in the East”, tells Jacques Guichandut, CEO of the DMC All Dreams Cambodia and also the official tourism representative for French-speaking countries in Europe.
Cambodia tourism is a success story of the last two decades in Southeast Asia. From a little bit more than a million international tourists in 2004, the Southeast Asian kingdom reached a peak of 6.6 million travellers in 2019. Covid took its toll with tourism collapsing to an all time low of 196,000 in 2021. “Cambodia was however the first country to fully reopen to tourism in November 2021. It has also been among the most efficient country during the pandemic to protect its population and limit Covid spreading. This was reflected by a growth of over 1000% in total international arrivals in 2022 with around 2.3 million visitors,” highlights Jacques Guichandut, CEO of All Dreams Cambodia, a major DMC which is specialised to packages exclusive to Cambodia.
For the first six months of 2023, Cambodia recorded already more international arrivals than the entire year 2022. The Kingdom welcomed around 2.57 million international visitors, a remarkable increase of 409%. The Ministry of Tourism believes that Cambodia could easily reach again the 5-million mark in international visitors by year-end. Meanwhile, growth this year came so far mostly from ASEAN neighbours such as Thailand or Vietnam.
“Cambodia is indeed a destination which can easily be sold on its own and not be an extension of a trip in Vietnam or Thailand. However, we now need to change our image and promote ourselves as a multi-destination country. As long as Cambodia is only promoted for Angkor Wat temples, we will have difficulties to attract long-stay travellers -particularly from overseas,” adds Guichandut.
All Dreams Cambodia CEO believes that both the private and public sector should join hands to speed up the promotion of all destinations in the Kingdom. “For example, there is a serious lack of image for Cambodia’s capital Phnom Penh. The city changed dramatically over the last decade becoming increasingly sophisticated. It offers a cosmopolitan urban vibe with its culinary scene, its cultural institutions, its bars, nightspots, good shopping as well as many boutique hotels or international chains. It is truly a destination on its own but it needs now to be promoted as such,” describes Guichandut.
New infrastructures to boost tourism appeal
Other spots are pristine beaches in the south of the country between Sihanoukville and the border to Vietnam. “We have empty pristine beaches of white sand which are even better than our neighbours,” enthuses All Dreams Cambodia CEO. Cambodia eastern is also famed as an environment paradise with wild animals. The provinces of Mondulkiri and Ratanakiri are already known for their wealth of natural resources. Visitors can visit elephants or gibbons’ sanctuaries as well as majestic waterfalls and learn about local ethnic communities. While the city of Battambang, near the Thai border, is increasingly turning into a hub for contemporary arts while retaining one of the Kingdom’s best preserved colonial districts.
“We have so many assets but we need to make them better known from professionals and the public. We need to consequently strengthen our marketing and talk about Cambodia’s numerous achievements. For example, the Kingdom is far more advanced than many others when implementing environment measures. Most of Phnom Penh’s tuk-tuks are electric while more and more hotels implement ambitious environment-friendly and CRS policies,” adds Guichandut.
A major boost will be the opening of two brand-new airports in the coming months. Siem Reap city with the fabled Angkor temples will get a brand new airport by October. The airport will be located some 40 km away from the town and the temples and will be able to accommodate long-haul aircraft with an initial capacity of 7 million passengers. At the end of 2024 or early 2025, a new airport will also open in Phnom Penh, which could bring new international carriers, including some from overseas. A good sign is that Asia largest group of low-cost airlines, AirAsia, will open in November an affiliate in the country, offering new connections and low fares to visit Cambodia.